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**Types of Death (Akal) in Vedic Literature**
Seeing thousands of young people dying together in war and calamity, and also witnessing the elderly and frail bodies being saved from terrifying disasters, one might doubt whether there is such a thing as untimely death, where many people die together while some do not die at all. The answer is both yes and no.
There are two types of life span - one that is avoidable (Apavartaniya) and one that is unavoidable (Anapavartaniya). The life span that can be quickly experienced before the completion of bondage-related conditions is avoidable, while the life span that cannot be experienced before the completion of bondage-related conditions is unavoidable. In other words, if the duration of life is less than that set by the bondage-related conditions, it is avoidable, and if it is equal to that duration, it is unavoidable.
The bondage of avoidable and unavoidable life span is not natural but depends on the quality of results. The life span of future births is constructed in the current birth. If during that time the results are slow, the bondage of life span loosens, which reduces the bondage-related time frame upon receiving the cause. Conversely, if the results are intense, the bondage of life span becomes strong, and even upon receiving the cause, the bondage-related time frame does not reduce, nor can the life span be experienced all at once.
Just as a line of very firmly standing men is impenetrable, while a line of loosely standing men is penetrable, or as densely sown plants are difficult for animals to access while sparsely sown plants are easily accessible, similarly, a life span bound by intense results does not complete before the allotted time even when weapons, poison, etc. are used, while a life span bound by slow results can be completed almost immediately upon such use, even before the designated time limit ends.
This rapid experience of life is called Apavartana or untimely death, while the experience of the designated condition is called Anapavartana or timely death. Avoidable life span is always associated with causes and effects. The causes such as sharp weapons, strong poison, intense fire, etc., leading to untimely death, are present. This is necessarily true for avoidable life span because it is experience-able before the expiration of the time limit as per the rules. However, the unavoidable life span can be of two types: one with causes that lead to untimely death and one without. Even when such causes are present, the unavoidable life span does not complete before the designated time limit.